Theatre’s Performance of the Greek Play “Antigone”

Two weeks ago, the McMurry Theatre department performed the well-known Greek Play “Antigone”. It was performed outside the Campus Center, which made it a different performance environment than usual! Most performances during the school year are in Ryan Little Theatre in the Fine Arts building, but Director Neena McLain wanted to take advantage of the new space and give the audience a different experience. She stated, “I actually really liked performing the show outside. It was fun to use the new outdoor area and give a nod to ancient Greek Theatre.”

Antigone’s cast included some of our freshman students, one of them being Theatre Education major Mia Mckean. She was incredible in the show and gave an outstanding performance. She says that she was very grateful to be a part of a Greek play because she believes that as a well-versed actor, you should have experience in all types of plays. I asked Mia how she felt about her first show here being performed outside, and she said, “I loved being able to work at the Campus Center because I quickly got more and more comfortable in a space that is so prominent on campus”.

One of my favorite parts about rehearsing outside was being able to see students’ reactions as they walked in and out of the campus center. Especially when we first started rehearsing outside, we got lots of confused reactions and questions asked by many walking by. I think it was a great way for students who are not in Theatre to see how a rehearsal is run. Lots of people would stop and watch for a bit, some even sitting down and staying for a while.

Something that everyone involved in Antigone could agree on is that the outside factors were everyone’s least favorite part of the process. Acting in the heat with mosquitos and bird noises made it for an interesting rehearsal every night. We quickly learned that we had to cover ourselves in bug spray to make it through the evening. I realized how hard it was to focus being able to see everything around me such as birds, people walking by, cars, and just noises nearby. I definitely learned how to really focus and not let my surroundings take me out of the performance.

One unique aspect of the show was that McMurry’s Percussion performed alongside the actors! They created an extraordinary and original score that blew everyone away. Their contribution truly elevated the performance and gave it a sense of completeness.

If you did not get the opportunity to see “Antigone”, it was filmed by GoJinn Studios and can be accessed through the YouTube link below!